Versatile (Van Morrison album)

Versatile is the 38th studio album by Van Morrison, released on 1 December 2017 by Caroline.[1] His second release of the year, it entered the Top 40 in six countries, including the UK. The album consists of some originals, both new and older, mixed with jazz standards.

Versatile
Studio album by
Van Morrison
Released1 December 2017
Recorded2013, 2017
Length68:00
LabelLegacy (US) Caroline (rest of the world)
ProducerVan Morrison
Van Morrison chronology
Roll with the Punches
(2017)		 Versatile
(2017)		 You're Driving Me Crazy
(2018)

Recording

The first track, "Broken Record", is an original composition whose opening riff traces back to "Heathrow Shuffle", an instrumental Morrison played from around 1974 in concerts, and is included on the Live at Montreux 1980/1974 DVD. Another original, "Affirmation", was based on a previously-released "Sax Instrumental No. 1" from a 1999 CD single for "Back on Top".[2]

Critical reception

The Guardian describes the album as a "lively trip through the swing songbook", "a curious little joy of a record", and "very much a mood album, gently swinging".[3]

Track listing
  1. "Broken Record" (Morrison)
  2. "A Foggy Day" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)
  3. "Let's Get Lost" (Jimmy McHugh, Frank Loesser)
  4. "Bye Bye Blackbird" (Ray Henderson, Mort Dixon)
  5. "Skye Boat Song" (Traditional; arranged by Morrison)
  6. "Take It Easy Baby" (Morrison)
  7. "Makin' Whoopee" (Gus Kahn, Walter Donaldson)
  8. "I Get a Kick Out of You" (Cole Porter)
  9. "I Forgot That Love Existed" (Morrison)
  10. "Unchained Melody" (Alex North, Hy Zaret)
  11. "Start All Over Again" (2017 Version) (Morrison)
  12. "Only a Dream" (2013 Version) (Morrison)
  13. "Affirmation" (Morrison)
  14. "The Party's Over" (Jule Styne, Betty Comden, Adolph Green)
  15. "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" (George Cory, Douglass Cross)
  16. "They Can't Take That Away from Me" (George Gershwin, Ira Gershwin)

Musicians
  • Van Morrison : Vocals, Alto Saxophone
  • Jay Berliner : Acoustic Spanish Guitar
  • Dave Keary : Electric Guitar
  • Paul Moore  : Bass guitar
  • Paul Moran : Keyboards, trumpet, musical director
  • Sir James Galway : Concert Flute
  • Christopher White : Tenor Saxophone
  • Alistair White : Trombone
  • Jeff Lardner : Drums
  • Mez Clough ; Drums
  • Robbie Ruggiero : Percussion
  • Rod Quinn : Percussion

Charts
Chart (2017) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[4] 31
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[5] 26
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[6] 36
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[7] 28
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[8] 35
Irish Albums (IRMA)[9] 28
Italian Albums (FIMI)[10] 88
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[11] 37
Scottish Albums (OCC)[12] 30
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[13] 10
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[14] 50
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[15] 80
UK Albums (OCC)[16] 38
US Billboard 200[17] 119

References
  1. Van Morrison Announces New Album 'Versatile' Singer's 38th studio LP mixes jazz standards with new originals
  2. Release "Back on Top" on MusicBrainz. Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  3. Micheal, Hann (30 November 2017). "Van Morrison: Versatile review – lively trip through the swing songbook". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 November 2022.
  4. "Australiancharts.com – Van Morrison – Versatile". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  5. "Austriancharts.at – Van Morrison – Versatile" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  6. "Ultratop.be – Van Morrison – Versatile" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  7. "Dutchcharts.nl – Van Morrison – Versatile" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  8. "Offiziellecharts.de – Van Morrison – Versatile" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 December 2017.
  9. "Irish Albums Chart: 8 December 2017". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  10. "Album – Classifica settimanale WK 49 (dal 2017-12-01 al 2017-12-07)" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  11. "NZ Top 40 Albums Chart". Recorded Music NZ. 18 December 2017. Retrieved 15 December 2017.
  12. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  13. "Top 100 Albumes — Semana 49: del 01.12.2017 al 07.12.2017" (in Spanish). Productores de Música de España. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  14. "Swedishcharts.com – Van Morrison – Versatile". Hung Medien. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  15. "Swisscharts.com – Van Morrison – Versatile". Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 December 2017.
  16. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
  17. "Van Morrison Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 12 December 2017.
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